BMA condemns ‘exorbitant’ increase in CQC fees

The British Medical Association (BMA) has condemned proposed plans that could see a large rise in regulatory fees for GP practices and NHS Trusts.

The proposed plans from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) could see fees payable to the regulator rise by up to seven times, according to the BMA.

The BMA has described the fee changes as ‘exorbitant’, and has warned that small GP practices could see fees rise from £725 to £4,839, which could have a ‘catastrophic’ effect on patient care.

Analysis from the BMA also suggests trusts with turnovers of £125 million - £225 million could see fees rise from £78,208 in 2012-16 to £215,835 in 2017-18.

The BMA’s formal response said: “By forcing NHS providers to pay fees direct to CQC — masquerading as full costs recovery — the government will no doubt assert a decrease in [Department of Health] spend, while in reality mercilessly raiding a budget, purportedly ring fenced for frontline services.

“As the sole provider of system regulation and consequently with a monopoly and captive market, the CQC is an increasingly bloated bureaucracy with little focus on value for money or analysis of the real performance indicators linking cost to quality outcomes.”